Josiah jacoby



J. J ACOBY.

TOOL FOR TIGHTENING SPOKES.

(No Model.)

No. 564,151. Patented Julyl l, 1896.

WITNESSES UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSIAH JACOBY, on LODI, QHIO, ASSIGNOR or ONE-HALF TO JOSHUA w. MORSE,or SAME PLACE.

TOOL FOR 'l'lGHTENlNG SPOKES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 564,151, dated July 14,1896.

Application filed March 21, 1896. Serial No. 584,292. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSIAH JAOOBY, a citizen of the United States,residing at Lodi, in the county of Medina and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Tools for TighteningSpokes; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, andexact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilledin the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to bicycle-tools; and it consists of a preferablycylindrical body portion provided with avertical passage open at top andbottom, said body portion being constructed at its lower end with agraduated wrench or gripping-claw, the tool being adapted to receive aspoke within its body portion through the vertical passage, and thenipple of a spoke to be grasped by the graduated claw or wrench andtightened or loos-' ened to the extent desired without removing the toolfrom the spoke, and it also consists, in combination with a toolconstructed as above describechof a screw-driveror tightening devicehaving a notched end whereby the screw-driver can be applied to a nippleat the end of a spoke and the nipple screwed down and the end of thespoke allowed to pass up into the notch in the screw-driver, and it alsoconsists in certain other details of construction, as will behereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of animproved bicycletool. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view of a portionof a wheel, showing the tool applied to a nipple at a point outside therim; and Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a portion of a wheel, showing thetool applied to a nipple at a point on the inside of the rim.

A in the drawings represents the body portion of my improved tool, whichis made preferably cylindrical in form and hollow for the purpose ofcheapness and lightness, and as a convenient shape to be grasped by thehand of the operator and to be carried in a tool-bag or in the pocket.The cylindrical body portion is provided with a vertical slot a, whichis cut through the wall and through the bottom of the body portion andextends nearly to the center of the same and the entire length of thebody portion. The body portion is also open at its upper end. Thepurpose of this construction is to receive the spoke of the bicycle andpermit the same to pass into the body portion, so that theoperating-tools which project from either end of the body port-ion canbe brought in contact with a nipple on a spoke to tighten or loosen thespoke.

A curved claw 13 projects outwardly and inwardly from the upper end ofthe body portion and is provided with a graduallytapering deep slot 5,said slot being widest at the outer end of the claw and narrowest at itsinner end. The walls of the slot are made flat, so as to grasp thenipple squarely, and thereby prevent the corners of a squared nipplebeing rounded off. This slot in the claw-shaped jaw coincides with thevertical passage in the body portion of the tool, so that the tool canbe conveniently slipped onto a spoke and the nipple firmly gripped bythe jaw and turned to any extent desired without removing the tool fromthe spoke, and without requiring the hold on the nipple to be changed.The lower end of the body portion of the tool is provided-with acentrally-arranged, downwardly-extending nippletightening device 0. Thisdevice consists of a shank, which is provided on its lower end edge witha recess 0 for a purpose to be presently stated. This nipple-tighteningdevice is intended to be applied at the outer end of the spoke where thenipple projects through the rim. When this tightening device is appliedto the nipple at this point, the lips c 0, formed by the recess 0, areentered into recesses formed in the outer end of the nipple, and byrevolving the tool in the end the nipple is screwed down until the spokeprojects slightly through the nipple. This projecting end of the, spokeis received by the recess 0 in the tightening device, so that the operation of tightening the spoke is not interfered with. This tighteningdevice 0 will be found most convenient in building up a Wheel, as, afterthe wheel is constructed, the spokes can usually be sufficientlytightened by screwing up the nipples from the outside of the rim.

My improved bicycle-tool will be found very convenient in the shop aswell as by riders of bicycles, and, being very simple, cheap, practical,and light, will be found to be a very desirable accessory to a bicycle.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The improved article of manufacture consisting of a tool fortightening spokes, said tool comprising in its construction a hollowtubular body port-ion adapted to be grasped around its periphery withthe hand and thus serve as the operating-handle, and which is open atthe top and closed at the bottom and has a vertical spoke entrancepassage along its wall which extends through the bottom, a claw-shapedjaw atthe open end of the body portion provided with a tapering passageregistering with the passage in the wall and bottom portion, said jawbeing applied on the inner surface of said body portion and secured tothe body portion, substantially as described.

2. The improved article of manufacture consisting of a tool fortightening spokes, said tool comprising in its construction a hollowtubular body portion adapted to be grasped around its periphery with thehand and thus serve as the opera-ting-handle, and which is. open at thetop and closed at the bottom and has a vertical spoke entrance passagealong its wall which extends through the bottom, a clawshaped jaw at theopen end of the body portion provided with a tapering passageregistering with the passage in the wall and bottom portion and adapted.for having another tool fitted in its other end, substantially as andfor the purpose described.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

.TOSIA'I I JACOBY. Witnesses:

S. L. DYER, W". J. SHULENBERGER.

